NURS 1150 | PHARMACOLOGY PRACTICE RESOURCE
NURS 1150 Exam 1
Practice Questions & Answers with Rationales
2026–2027 | Pharmacology Study Guide
Purpose and Scope
This resource contains 40 original multiple-choice questions covering
foundational pharmacology, medication safety, administration, pharmacokinetics
and pharmacodynamics, adverse effects, and patient education. NURS 1150
content may vary by institution; compare this practice set with your instructor’s
objectives and syllabus.
Section 1 — Practice Questions
Question 1. Before the first dose of a newly prescribed medication, what
should the nurse do first?
A. Give it because the prescriber ordered it
B. Verify the order, patient identity, allergies, and relevant assessment data
C. Ask another patient whether it worked for them
D. Document it as administered
Correct Answer: B — Verify the order, patient identity, allergies, and relevant
assessment data
Detailed Rationale: Medication safety begins with verifying the order, correct
patient, allergy history, and patient-specific assessment findings.
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
,NURS 1150 | PHARMACOLOGY PRACTICE RESOURCE
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. A prescriber’s order does not remove the nurse’s safety checks.
C. Another patient’s experience does not establish safety for this patient.
D. Documentation must reflect care after it occurs.
Question 2. What does pharmacokinetics describe?
A. How a drug produces effects at receptors
B. How the body absorbs, distributes, metabolizes, and excretes a drug
C. How a patient feels about medication
D. How drugs are packaged
Correct Answer: B — How the body absorbs, distributes, metabolizes, and
excretes a drug
Detailed Rationale: Pharmacokinetics is what the body does to a drug:
absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. This describes pharmacodynamics.
C. Patient attitudes can affect adherence but do not define pharmacokinetics.
D. Packaging is not pharmacokinetics.
Question 3. What does a medication’s half-life mean?
A. Time until all drug is eliminated
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
,NURS 1150 | PHARMACOLOGY PRACTICE RESOURCE
B. Time for plasma concentration to decrease by about 50%
C. Time between ordering and administration
D. Time until every patient reaches peak effect
Correct Answer: B — Time for plasma concentration to decrease by about 50%
Detailed Rationale: Half-life is the time required for plasma drug concentration
to fall by approximately one-half.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. Elimination usually requires several half-lives.
C. Ordering and administration time is unrelated.
D. Peak effect varies by drug, formulation, route, and patient.
Question 4. A patient reports penicillin allergy with prior facial swelling and
wheezing. A related antibiotic is ordered. What should the nurse do?
A. Give it and observe
B. Clarify the order and allergy risk before administration
C. Give half the dose
D. Document the allergy after giving it
Correct Answer: B — Clarify the order and allergy risk before administration
Detailed Rationale: Prior facial swelling and wheezing may indicate a serious
immediate hypersensitivity reaction. Hold and clarify the order.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. Observation after exposure is not an adequate safeguard.
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
, NURS 1150 | PHARMACOLOGY PRACTICE RESOURCE
C. A smaller dose does not reliably prevent an allergic reaction.
D. The risk must be addressed before administration.
Question 5. Which route generally provides immediate systemic availability
when an appropriate medication is given by that route?
A. Oral
B. Subcutaneous
C. Intravenous
D. Transdermal
Correct Answer: C — Intravenous
Detailed Rationale: IV administration delivers medication directly into the
bloodstream, although it requires appropriate technique and monitoring.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. Oral medication must be absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract.
B. Subcutaneous medication must be absorbed from tissue.
D. Transdermal delivery is generally designed for gradual absorption.
Question 6. How should an enteric-coated tablet usually be administered?
A. Crush and mix with food
B. Chew thoroughly
C. Swallow whole unless product instructions say otherwise
D. Dissolve in hot water
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
NURS 1150 Exam 1
Practice Questions & Answers with Rationales
2026–2027 | Pharmacology Study Guide
Purpose and Scope
This resource contains 40 original multiple-choice questions covering
foundational pharmacology, medication safety, administration, pharmacokinetics
and pharmacodynamics, adverse effects, and patient education. NURS 1150
content may vary by institution; compare this practice set with your instructor’s
objectives and syllabus.
Section 1 — Practice Questions
Question 1. Before the first dose of a newly prescribed medication, what
should the nurse do first?
A. Give it because the prescriber ordered it
B. Verify the order, patient identity, allergies, and relevant assessment data
C. Ask another patient whether it worked for them
D. Document it as administered
Correct Answer: B — Verify the order, patient identity, allergies, and relevant
assessment data
Detailed Rationale: Medication safety begins with verifying the order, correct
patient, allergy history, and patient-specific assessment findings.
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
,NURS 1150 | PHARMACOLOGY PRACTICE RESOURCE
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. A prescriber’s order does not remove the nurse’s safety checks.
C. Another patient’s experience does not establish safety for this patient.
D. Documentation must reflect care after it occurs.
Question 2. What does pharmacokinetics describe?
A. How a drug produces effects at receptors
B. How the body absorbs, distributes, metabolizes, and excretes a drug
C. How a patient feels about medication
D. How drugs are packaged
Correct Answer: B — How the body absorbs, distributes, metabolizes, and
excretes a drug
Detailed Rationale: Pharmacokinetics is what the body does to a drug:
absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. This describes pharmacodynamics.
C. Patient attitudes can affect adherence but do not define pharmacokinetics.
D. Packaging is not pharmacokinetics.
Question 3. What does a medication’s half-life mean?
A. Time until all drug is eliminated
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
,NURS 1150 | PHARMACOLOGY PRACTICE RESOURCE
B. Time for plasma concentration to decrease by about 50%
C. Time between ordering and administration
D. Time until every patient reaches peak effect
Correct Answer: B — Time for plasma concentration to decrease by about 50%
Detailed Rationale: Half-life is the time required for plasma drug concentration
to fall by approximately one-half.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. Elimination usually requires several half-lives.
C. Ordering and administration time is unrelated.
D. Peak effect varies by drug, formulation, route, and patient.
Question 4. A patient reports penicillin allergy with prior facial swelling and
wheezing. A related antibiotic is ordered. What should the nurse do?
A. Give it and observe
B. Clarify the order and allergy risk before administration
C. Give half the dose
D. Document the allergy after giving it
Correct Answer: B — Clarify the order and allergy risk before administration
Detailed Rationale: Prior facial swelling and wheezing may indicate a serious
immediate hypersensitivity reaction. Hold and clarify the order.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. Observation after exposure is not an adequate safeguard.
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
, NURS 1150 | PHARMACOLOGY PRACTICE RESOURCE
C. A smaller dose does not reliably prevent an allergic reaction.
D. The risk must be addressed before administration.
Question 5. Which route generally provides immediate systemic availability
when an appropriate medication is given by that route?
A. Oral
B. Subcutaneous
C. Intravenous
D. Transdermal
Correct Answer: C — Intravenous
Detailed Rationale: IV administration delivers medication directly into the
bloodstream, although it requires appropriate technique and monitoring.
Why the Other Options Are Incorrect
A. Oral medication must be absorbed through the gastrointestinal tract.
B. Subcutaneous medication must be absorbed from tissue.
D. Transdermal delivery is generally designed for gradual absorption.
Question 6. How should an enteric-coated tablet usually be administered?
A. Crush and mix with food
B. Chew thoroughly
C. Swallow whole unless product instructions say otherwise
D. Dissolve in hot water
Original educational practice material • Verify against your course syllabus
